Greg Bach is the communications director for the National Alliance For Youth Sports, a position he has held since 1993. Before joining NAYS, he worked as the sports editor of the Huron Daily Tribune in Bad Axe, Michigan, where he captured numerous writing awards from the Associated Press, Michigan Press Association, and the Hearst Corporation. He has a journalism degree from Michigan State University, which he earned in 1989. He's an avid sport fan and has coached a variety of youth sports.

James Heller has been involved in football on and off for over 35 years. As a player, he played from youth-team level through into senior football. He has also helped to coach and manage football teams at several different age levels. In his time associated with 'the beautiful game' he has seen junior football coaching in the UK improve from a situation where 20 children ran around a muddy park aimlessly chasing the ball, watched by two cold goalkeepers, to one where the focus is on mini-soccer, skills improvement, and 'one child, one ball' training sessions.

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

What You're Not to Read 2

Foolish Assumptions 3

How This Book Is Organised 3

Part I: Getting Started Coaching Football 3

Part II: Building Your Coaching Skills 4

Part III: Beginning and Intermediate Football 4

Part IV: Advanced Football Strategies 4

Part V: The Finer Details 5

Part VI: The Part of Tens 5

Icons Used in This Book 5

Where to Go from Here 6

Part I: Getting Started Coaching Football 7

Chapter 1: Coaching Children in Football 9

Striking a Balance between Parenting and Coaching 9

Kicking around the decision with your kid 10

Focusing on family-friendly football rules 11

Doing Your Homework 12

Working with - and not against - parents 13

Deciphering rules and mastering terminology 14

On the Pitch 14

Planning training sessions 14

Match day 15

Chapter 2: Getting Organised 17

Developing a Coaching Philosophy 17

Tailoring your coaching to your age group 18

Emphasising teamwork 20

Motivating players 22

Fostering a positive atmosphere 23

Making every kid count 23

Focusing on fun and skill development 24

Modelling good sportsmanship 25

Understanding the League You're Coaching In 26

Knowing your league's rules 27

Playing for fun or first place 28

Chapter 3: Knowing the Football Basics 31

Inside the Lines 31

Taking Up Position 34

Positions on the pitch 34

Placing kids in the appropriate positions 39

Deciphering the Rules of the Game 41

Putting the Ball Back into Play 43

Throw-in 43

Corner kicks 44

Goal kicks 44

Adjusting the Game for the Younger Leagues 45

Smaller pitch size 45

Smaller balls 46

No-goalie games 46

Fewer players 46

Special substitution rules 47

The Men (and Women) in Black: Referees 48

Hand signals 48

Major fouls 50

Types of penalties 51

Minor fouls 52

Offsides 53

Part II: Building Your Coaching Skills 57

Chapter 4: Meet the Parents 59

Introducing Yourself 60

Explaining your coaching philosophy 61

Emphasising good sportsmanship 62

Detailing how you determine playing time 63

'Who's playing goalie?' and other sticky positioning situations 65

Putting Together the Paperwork 66

League paperwork 66

Team packs 67

Assembling Your Parent Posse 68

Choosing assistant coaches 68

Defining supporting roles 69

Going Over Equipment 71

Meeting Players' Special Needs 73

Answering Parents' Questions 73

Chapter 5: Evaluating Your Team 75

The Art of Evaluation 75

Evaluating your players' skills 76

Identifying team strengths and weaknesses 78

Lining 'Em Up 80

Assigning team positions 80

Finding roles for everyone 82

Understanding and Interacting with All the Kids 83

The shy child 83

The uncoordinated child 84

The child with the short attention span 85

The athletically gifted child 86

The child who doesn't want to be there 87

The disruptive child 88

The child with special needs 89

The bully 90

The inexperienced child 91

The ball hog 92

The average child 94

Chapter 6: Running a Great Training Session 97

Coming to Training Prepared 97

Bringing balls and cones 98

Packing your first-aid kit 99

First Training Session: Kicking Off the Season 100

Greeting the team for the first time 101

Making coach and player introductions 102

Knowing the skills to focus on first 104

Putting smiles on their faces 104

Creating a Training Plan 108

Putting it all together 109

Figuring out how long and how often 111

Thinking about practice games 112

Ensuring lots of touches for each child 113

Letting kids help select training session drills 114

Setting the tone 114

Keeping things consistent 115

Making Training Time Beneficial 116

Recognising the high points 117

Building skills 118

Helping those who need it 119

Ending on a Positive Note 120

Chapter 7: Match Day 123

Understanding Your Pre-game Responsibilities 123

Inspect the pitch 124

Meet with the opposing coach and officials 124

Holding a Pre-game Team Meeting 125

Fire up your team with an inspirational talk 126

Assign positions 128

Keep instructions simple 128

Conducting Your Warm-Up 129

Kick Off! 131

Motivating during the game 132

Communicating tactics 133

Taking advantage of breaks in play 134

Substituting players 134

Making the Most of the Half-time Speech 135

Winning and Losing Gracefully 140

Winning gracefully 140

Losing well 141

Making an Impact with a Post Match Talk 141

Keep the focus on fun 142

Accentuate the positive 142

Recognising good sportsmanship 143

Dealing with defeat 143

Chapter 8: Refining Your Coaching Strategies 145

Dealing with Shifting Team Dynamics 145

Recognising improvements 146

Revising your plan 147

Undergoing a Mid-Season Review 148

Pointing out progress and improvement 148

Setting goals 148

Making plans for players 150

Chatting with Parents 151

Part III: Beginning and Intermediate Football 153

Chapter 9: Mastering the Fundamentals 155

Introducing First-Timers to Football 156

Shooting 156

Explaining the instep kick 157

Ball Dribbling 160

Passing 161

Trapping 163

Receiving 165

Heading 166

Goalkeeping 168

Defending 171

Determining What to Do If a Kid Just Doesn't Get It 172

Making a difference 173

Recognising physical problems 174

Coaching with dignity 174

Chapter 10: Fundamental Drills for a New Team 177

Warming Up Right 177

Drills for Attacking Play 180

Passing and receiving 180

Shooting 182

Ball dribbling 183

Heading 185

Defensive Drills 186

Tackling 187

Defending 188

Goalkeeping 190

Chapter 11: Coaching Basic Attacking 193

Planning Different Types of Attacks 193

Understanding Positional Play 196

Kicking the Attacking Skills Up a Notch 198

Shielding 198

Square pass 199

Through pass 199

Chipped pass 200

Crossfield pass 200

Outside of foot pass 201

The one-two 201

Bend it like Beckham 202

Driving 203

Chapter 12: Coaching Basic Defending 205

Exploring Different Types of Defence 205

Man-to-man defence 206

Zonal defence 208

Improving Defensive Skills 210

Marking 211

Block tackle 212

Shoulder charge 213

Side tackle 214

Sliding tackle 214

Hook tackle 216

Part IV: Advanced Football Strategies 219

Chapter 13: Taking It Up a Notch: Drills 221

Attacking Drills 221

Attacking 222

Passing 223

Shooting 224

Ball handling 225

Heading 228

Defensive Drills 229

Tackling 229

Defending 230

Goalkeeping 231

Putting It All Together: Sample Training Session 232

Chapter 14: Upgrading Attacking Tactics and Skills 235

Upgrading the Attack 235

Two-three-five formation 236

Four-two-four formation 238

Three-three-four formation 239

Three-five-two formation 240

Three-four-three formation 241

Introducing New Attacking Skills 243

Delivering crosses 243

Heading crosses 244

Feints 245

Chapter 15: Advanced Defending and Formations 251

Experimenting with Defensive Formations 251

Four-three-three formation 252

Four-four-two formation 254

Four-five-one formation 256

Clearing Strategies 257

The back pass to the keeper 258

Clearing toward the touchlines 258

Introducing New Defensive Skills 259

Chasing down 259

Man marking 260

Moving out 260

Offside trap 261

Chapter 16: Coaching Set Pieces 263

Attacking from Set Pieces 263

Throw-ins 264

Penalty kicks 266

Corner kicks 267

Free kicks 269

Defending Set Pieces 272

Throw-ins 272

The wall 273

Goal keeper's drop kicks 274

Goalie throws 275

Defending corner kicks 276

Defending penalty kicks 276

Defending direct and indirect kicks 277

Chapter 17: Implementing Advanced Exercises 279

Conditioning Your Players 279

Developing Challenging Exercises 281

Part V: The Finer Details 287

Chapter 18: Keeping Kids Injury Free and Healthy 289

Warming Up to Injury Prevention 289

Stretching to improve flexibility 291

Breaking a sweat 292

Cooling off 293

Handling Injuries 294

Dealing with blood 294

Soothing strains and sprains 295

Coping with more serious injuries 296

Handling emergency situations 298

Be prepared for emergencies 298

Watching the Weather 299

Following a Healthy Diet 300

What to eat - pre-game 301

What to eat post-game 302

Getting enough water 302

Chapter 19: Challenges Every Coach Faces 305

Dealing with Problem Parents 305

Parents who want to win at all costs...